YouView Humax DTR-T1010: Hands-on pictures and first impressions

Last week we heard about Humax launching its latest YouView box, the Humax DTR-T1010. Now we’ve got our hands on one and have taken a few snaps of it before setting it up.

The difference between this and the original Humax DTR-T1000 – the first YouView box – is purely cosmetic. Instead of the shiny black plastic contours, what you get here is a flat, angular panel with a faux-brushed metal finish that gives the box something of a retro look.

We also liked that the USB port on the front was hidden by a neat little glove compartment-style panel, as opposed to the little dust plug of the original. This is much easier on the eye as well as easier to open and close.

In terms of functions, the DTR-T1010 is identical to the original YouView unit. There’s a digital terrestrial aerial socket on the back next to an Ethernet port. As YouView gives you a blend of the same channels you’d get on Freeview plus on-demand extras all accessed through one seamless menu, you’ll need to be plugged into both your digital terrestrial aerial and your home broadband router.

Those hoping for the option to connect this YouView box via WiFi will be disappointed – there’s still no option to do that.

The new Humax DTR-T1010 is on sale now in John Lewis and costs £299.99 for the 500GB version and £329.99 for its 1TB counterpart.

In terms of how much TV you can record on these different sized hard drives, Humax says that the 500GB drive will give you 300 hours of SD (standard definition) TV and 125 hours of HD (high definition) TV.

Over the coming weeks, you’ll also be able to pick these up in places including Dixons and independent electrical retailers.

We prefer it to the look of the original if we’re honest. But beauty is in the eye of the beholder. It’s also worth noting that would you rather get the original box, you can snap one up from John Lewis for £249.99 – a little less than the original price.

Is this new bodywork enough for you to be convinced by YouView or do you think the service needs a bit more va-va-voom? Have a look through our hands-on pictures and let us know your thoughts in the comments and on Twitter.